Braking mechanism for railway car trucks



Jan, 21, 1942. H, A, MQELLER 2,271,376y

BRAKING MECHANISMFOR RAILWAY CAR T.RCKS

Filed Feb. 15, 1939 6 Sheets-Sheet' l A Jan 2 7, 1942- H. A.- MOELLR 2,271,376l

BRAKING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY GARTRUCKS l Filed Feb. A15, ,1939 e sheets-sheet 2 Jan. v27, 1942. H. A. MOELLER 2,271,375

BRAKING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY CARTRUCKS e sheets-sheet :s

` Filed Feb. 15, 19:59

IAMeZZer,

Jan. 275 '1942. H, A, MOELLER 2,271,376

V BBAKING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY C- TRUCKS Filed Feb. l5, 1939 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 'JzAJlfoezzm Jan. 27, 1942. H, A, MQELLER 2,271,376

BRAKING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY CAR-TRUCKS Filed Feb. l5, 1939 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 vwem/to/r/ LZZ. Melle?? Jan. 27, 1942. H. A. MOELLER f 2,271,376 v BRAKING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY CARTRUCKS Filed Feb. l5, 1939 6 Sheets-Sheetl 6 .7i A Moe 3h97',

Patented Jan. 27, 1942 BRAKING MECHANISM FOR RAILWAY CAR 1 TRUCKS y, Y vHarry-A. Moeller, Columbus, -Ohio, assignor to The Buckeye Steel lCasting lumbus, Ohio Company, Co-' ApplicationFebruary 15, 1939, Ser alNo."256,571

. 3Claims, This invention relatesllto improvements in brakingmeehanism for railway car trucks,` and while such improvements-have been designed for aneight-wheel truclgthey are equally'applicable toany truck having a center bolster.

vOne of theobjects ofthe invention is t provide atruck of the center bolster'type yin which the braking mechanism is divided into two units operated respectively by pressure fluidl cylinders carried by oppositeV end portions `of the center bplstenl Another objectis to supply braking mechanism having partsv constructedand arranged toreduce theoveralllengthof the truck.

further object is tosupply braking mechanism in which thelever system is dead ended at the medial portion of thev truck, By'deaduending the system at the medialportion'of` th-e truck, and operating it by meansof van air cylinder at each endY of` the truck, vit ispossible to "reduce the amountof accumulative slack at each cylin-` der toene-half of that which would occur if .two

cylinders were used (inthe same end of the truck,AA

each operating the brake shoesfon' one entire side of the truck. Y

Another object" is to' furnish in'mechanism of this character, a novel equalizer lever guide and support. l

An addiuonaiobject is to'sup'piy improvements inthe live end pull rod supports of thesystem to fprovide proper clearance for levers forming part'ofv the system.v

" 'A'nother'ob'ject is` to improve the -brake head structures, and to rso support them that the fshoes which they carry .willconform to the peripheries of. the wheels of the truck.

L With the foregoing objects outlinedan'd with other .objects vin vie'wwhich will 'appear as the description proceeds;Y the'v invention vconsists in the novel features hereinafter described in de-v tail, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and more.particularlypointed out in the appended claims. 1

In `the drawings: l f f Fig. 1 vis a top plan view of a truck provided withmy improved braking mechanism. 1 Y Fig. 2 is an enlargedxvertical sectional .View of one-half of the truck, and showing certain portions of my, improvements, the. section being takenonthe line L2--2 of Fig: 1...-

. Fig. 3 is a similar view, taken on the line 3-31 of Fig. 1.

Fig, 4 is an end View vof the truck.`

Fig. 5` is aivertical l' transverse sectional View, taken o n the liner 5-'5 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of one of the equalizer lever guides and supports. Y Fig; 7 is a side elevation of the brake head of one oi the rend wheel brakes, andthe supporting means for the same.

Fig. 8is a sectional viewytaken on the linev 8-8 of Fig. '7.

' Fig. 9 isa side elevation of a brake headiof one of the intermediate brake shoes, and the means' for 4supporting the same.

Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional the11ne|o-|o0f1=1g.9.,\ j Y Fig. 11 is a fragmentary elevationjof a modiiicatio'n.` d y Fig. 12jis atop .plan view of an extensible Aand contractable ,supporting rod for taking up slack in thebrakin'gsystem. I I

Fig. 13 is a side elevation of the rod.

Fig. 14 is a vertical sectional lview on the,v line guide and support shown in 1",ig..,6.l

Referring to the` wheels, and I2 theintermediate lwheels of the truck. lSuch'wheelssupport axles -,I 3 journaled in boxes I4 attachedrespectively to the intermediate members I5 land end members I6,of the side frames of the truck'.

In the truck illustrated,k equalizers I ,'I" are pivotally supported at I8 by thefinterrnediate merri-y bers, and have their ends pivotallyconnected at I9 tothe inner ends of'the'members I8; Thel latter support 'transverse holsters y2l! whichin turn support the center bolster 2I `having side rails 22which extend in opposite directionsin the form of arms 23. 'e kThe arms vof each pair terminate inn a plate 24, andr` air'air or other pressurey fluid cylinder 25 is secured to such plate,

preferably beneath the plate.'`

Zontal or inclined to the horizontal, as illustrated.

By inclining vthe cylinder' "it isfpossible to raise Y the inner end of the same suiliciently to allow it to/be moved back over an en'd`axle`13, thereby* reducing the overall length of'the truck. Elach cylinder isvprovide'd .with a p iston (not shown),

and such pistons are -connected to rpiston rods 26 f whichv project in opposite ldirections away from the center bolster. The outer en d of each rod is pivotally 'connected at 21 to theY medial portion of an equalizer lever '28 which vhas its end portions offset relatively,l to its'. medial portion, with such end portions arranged closer tothe center bolster than said medial portion.

.The ends of each equalizer lever! are 'fpivotally view, taken on rawings,` IIv designates endA lilachv cylinder maybe arranged either hori?.

connected at 29 tothe outer ends of links 30 (Figs. 3 and 4), and the inner end of each link is pivotally connected at 3| to the lower end of a lever 32, the upper end of the latter being pivotally supported at 33 by an extension 34 of the center bolster. A link 35 pivotally connects the medial portion of the lever 32 to the upper end of a lever 36, the medial portion of the latter being pivotally supported at 31 by a combined link and guide member 38, the latter having an offset extension 39 that is slidable in a guide sleeve 40 united with one of the end members` I6 of the side frame system and provided with a lower wearing plate 4| on which the arm 39 slides. The member 38 has a telescopic joint at 42, provided with holes 43 and 44 which may be brought into alignment and receive a connecting pin 45. In this way, wear in the parts of the braking system may be taken up at each side of each end of the truck.

The member 38 extends over one of the end axles |3, and its inner end is pivotally connected to the medial portion of a lever 46, the upper end of the lever being pivotally suspended from a slidable rod 41 carried by a guide 49 which in turn is supported by an end member |6 of the side frame system. The opposite end of the rod pivotally supports a lever 49 having its medial portion pivotally connected by a link 50 to the medial portion of a similar lever which is pivotally supported at its upper end by a brake hanger bracket 52 integral with a medial member |5 of the side frame system.

The lower end of each lever 36 is connected by a link 53 to a brake beam 54, the latter having its ends connected to the lower ends of levers 55, the upper ends of which are pivotally connected at 56 to the end members I6 of the side frame system.

The lower end of each of the levers 46, 49 and 5| are pivotally connected at 51 to links 58 which inl turn are pivotally connected to the intermediate brake beams 59 and 60. The beams 59 are supported by links 6| carried by a hanger bracket 62 forming part of spring seats 62 (Fig. 5), which support the springs 63 (Fig. 3) that carry the Vtransverse bolsters.

The brake beams 60 are supported by links 64 which have their upper ends pivotally connected to brake hanger brackets 65 forming part of the intermediate members of the side frame system.

-The levers or links 55 carry brake heads 66 which support brake shoes 61 for the end wheels. The brake heads and the means employed in connecting them to the links 55 are best shown in Figs. '7 and 8. In these figures it will be noted that the link is provided with a bushing 61a that supports a cylindrical pin 68. The latter has an enlarged cylindrical head 69 journaled in a bushing in an ear 1| forming part of the brake head. The pin also passes through a bushing 12 formed inthe opposite ear 13 of said head.

The outer end portion of the pin is threaded for the reception of Ya nut 14 which bears against a washer employed in compressing a coil spring 16 between it and an end of theA bushing 12. By tightening the nut it is obvious that the turning movement of the brake head 66 about the. pin may be controlled so that the brake head may be set to properly apply the brake shoe to an end wheel of the truck, but yet permit such shoe to conform to the periphery of the wheel.

The pin has an angular extension." which may be engaged by a wrench to prevent the pin from turning while the nut 14 is being manipulated.

Each link 55 has an aperture 18 at its lower end for the attachment of the brake beam 54. Each of the suspension links 6| and 64 for the intermediate brake heads 19 (Figs. 9 and 10), is provided at its lower end with a bushing 80 for the reception of a bushing 8| that surrounds a cylindrical extension 82 of one of the intermediate brake beams 59 or 60. The latter has an enlarged cylindrical portion 83 arranged in a bushingr 84 positioned in one of the ears 85 of the brake head 19. The opposite ear 86 of the brake head is provided with a bushing 81 that also surroundsthe bushing 8|. Each end of the brake beam is threaded to receive a nut 88 which bears against a washer 89 acting to compress a coil spring 90, which construction permits the control of the turning movement of the brake head about the cylindrical extension 82.

From the above it is apparent that my construction is such as toA permit use of the same brake heads on hanger levers at outside end positions, and on brake beams at intermediate positions.

Before describing the operation of the mechanism, I direct attention to the equalizer lever guide which is best illustrated in Figs. 6 and 2. Each of these members preferably consists of a piece of angle iron 9| arranged at an incline in the event that the air cylinder is inclined. The angle iron has a vertical wing 92 and a lateral wing 93, the latter being provided with a wear plate 94 for slidable support of the equalizer lever 28. The lateral wing also has apertures 95 for the reception `of bolts 96 that are employed in securing the guide to one of the plates 24 of the center bolster.

A post 91, preferably of strap metal, is sef cured to the vertical wing 92 by any suitable means such as welding 98, and it supports an upper guide member comprising a substantially angular part consisting of a lower part 99,` an upstanding part |00, and a top horizontal part |0I. The part 99 is parallel to, and arranged above, the wing 93, and its edge is welded at |02 to an edge or the post 91. A weld |03 connects a side edge of the part |0| to an edgeof the post, and another weld |04 secures the part; |0| to the top of the post. The member made' up of the parts 99, |00 and 0| is reinforced by a strut |05 which has its lower end portion parallel with the part 99 and secured thereto by welding |06. The upper end portion of the strut is parallel with the part |0| and is secured to that part and the upper end portion of the post respectively, by welds |01 `and |08. Apertures |09 are provided in the part |00 for the reception of bolts ||0 employed in securing theguide and support to the extension of the center bolster.

In operation, when air or any other suitable iiuid is introduced into the cylinders 25 under pressure, the pistons in the cylinders will force the piston rods outwardly, and they in Aturn will move the equalizer levers 28 in opposite directions away from one another.

Referring now to Fig. 3, it will be noted that the motion of the lever will cause the following to occur at each side of one-half of the truck. Link will pull the lower end of lever 32 forwardly, causing link to swing link 36` in a clock-wise direction about its pivotal support 31,

which in turn will cause link 53 to swing link in a counter-clock-wise direction and apply right. This will result in swinging lever 49 in-v a clockwise direction and pullingk rod 50 to cause link 5I to swing in a counter-clock-wise direction about the axis arranged at its lupper end. Obviously, this will result in the application of the brake shoes which are associated with the intermediate beams 59 and 60.

Of course, the brakes `on the other end of the truck are operated by the cylinder at that end of the truck, in the same manner. 'I'he dead ending of the lever system `at 52 reduces the amount of slack which accumulates in the lever system, due to the wearing of the parts. Adjustment for slack in the system may be made at the telescopic joints 42. Slack in the system increases the amount of piston travel required to apply the brakes. v This slack is of two kinds. The slack due to pin and bushing wear which is accumulative, so that a long system may accumulate a large amount of slack, requiring excessive piston travel with only nominal wear at each pin connection. The slack in the system due to brake shoe andwheel wear is not accumulative, and the length of the system does not aifect the amount of piston travel required to take up this type of slack. If the shoe wear is one-half inch, and the leverage ratiobetween the piston ,and the brake heads is l1 to 9, the piston travel required to take upthe onehalf inch at the shoes is 9 1/2 equals i1/2` inches, and this is true for one shoe or any number of shoes.

By dead ending the system at `the central portion of the truck and operating it by means of an air cylinder at eachA end of the truck, it is possible to reduce the amount of accumulative slack at each cylinder to one-half of that which would occur if two cylinders were used on the same end of the truck, each operating the brakes on one entire side of the truck.

Each equalizer lever 28 is offset,` as before stated, to provide clearance, when the piston is fully extended, between the ends of the lever and certain valves and parts (not shown), suspended from the body of the vehicle. The clearance between the ends of the lever and these body parts is also increased by this offset construction in the case where new shoes might be applied to one side of the truck only, while worn ones were used on the other side. In such a case, the new shoes would come in contact with the wheels rst, and the equalizer lever would then turn about the pin 2T, and the end of the lever 28 on the side having the greatest amount of slack would be extended farther from the truck. The offset construction of the equalizer lever servesto increase clearances between the body parts and the end of the lever under such conditions.

In order to support and guide the lever system near the end wheel, the rod 38 is provided with the offset portion 39, and this effects the requisite clearance for the operation of lever 32.

Referring to the equalizer lever guide and support shown in Fig, 6, it will be noted that the outer end of the support being open, it is possible for the equalizer lever 28 to move outward from the truck slightly beyond the ends of the support. By employing this open end type of construction, it is possible to make the support considerably shorter than with a closed end construction. In this manner, the overall length of the truck is also materially reduced.

Reverting to they trunnion' type brake heads shown in Figs.17 tolO inclusive, it will be noted that the design is such as to be used either at the outside of the end Wheels or at the intermediate positions, and the brake head may turn about its support in order to properly align 4each brake shoe with thebraking face of the wheel. In order to prevent the vibrations and jolts dueto travel and-gravitational pull on the head itself from moving the brake head out of itsproper alignment, its position relative to the hanger lever is fixed by means of friction which is maintained by the spring.' The compression of the spring is so adjusted that the friction is insufflcient to prevent the brake head from moving, when the brakes are applied, to compensate for wheel and shoe wear. The enlarged cylindrical surfaces 69 and 83 are provided to stabilize the brake heads.

Instead of dead ending the levers 5I by brake hanger brackets 52, I may, as shown in Fig. 11, connect these levers to a floating rod |20 that is supported by the intermediate member 15a of the side frame system. n

From the foregoing it is believed the construction, operation and advantages of the invention may be readily understood by those skilled in the art, and I am aware that changes may be made in the details disclosed, without departing from the spirit of the invention, as expressed in the claims. l

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a railway car truck of the type having wheel-supported axles, journal boxes mounted on the axles, side frame systems carried by the journal boxes, springs supported by the side frame systems, and bolster means supported by said springs and including a center bolster, the improvement which comprises a first supporting lever pivotally suspended from an end portion of said center bolster, a second lever, a `link connecting the upper portion of the second lever to y a medial portion of the first lever, a bracket supported by one of the side -frame systems, a substantially horizontal supporting rod pivotally connected to the medial portion of the second lever and having an offset portion extending past said first lever and slidably guided by said bracket, braking shoes operatively connected to the rod and second lever, and means for actuating the first lever whereby the brake shoes are applied to a wheel of the truck.

`2. In a railway car truck of the type having Wheel-supported axles, journal boxes mounted on the,axles,4side frame systems carried by the journal boxes, springs supported by the side frame systems, and bolster means supported by said springs and including a center bolster, the improvement which comprises a rst `supporting lever pivotally suspended from an end portion of said center bolster, a second lever, a link connecting the upper portion of the second lever to a medial portion of the rst lever, a bracket supported by one of the side frame systems, a substantially horizontal supporting yrod pivotally connected to the medial portion of the second lever and having an offset portion extending past 3. In a railway car truck of the type having a center bolster, a pressure iluid cylinder carried by an end portion of the bolster, a piston rod as sociated with the cylinder, an equalizing lever having its medial portion pivctaHy connected to the piston rod, and guide and supporting mem-y bers for said lever arranged at opposite sides of the piston rod and secured to said end portion of the center bolster, the improvement in each of said guide and supporting members which com- 10 prises an angle iron portion having e.v vertical Wing andV a lateral Wing, the lever being adapted to slide on said lateral Wing', a post secured to the vertical wing, an angular member secured to the post and having a portion arranged parallel to and spaced from said lateral wing, and a strut rigidly secured to and connecting the end por tions of the angular member.

HARRY A. MOELLER. 

